Language Games
Les Sims 2
conference powerpoint slides
This was a fairly long presentation in French and English for curious language teachers/learners or anybody interested in sharing new ideas in teaching/learning. In this atelier, people were given a demonstration of new practises available to teachers/learners of French including simulation games like sims 2 in French classes, French wikis, French tubing, etc. My sharing new ideas of learning and teaching is based on the development and practise of current classes at SUNY POTSDAM, NY, USA with Deux Mondes as a main grammatical reference. (see powerpoint slides below). I gave it first in Vegas and tweaked it for San Francisco (language teachers were there)
You need to have just some very basic knowledge about technology and languages, the Internet, games, wikis, tubing, etc. I compare traditional vs. more cutting-edge approaches to teaching, traditional with a textbook, revolutionary without it and hybrid, simulation gaming integrated with it (my deal! 
) I have been attending many CIT conference on instruction technology, focusing on French and technology in the United States using Deux Mondes as my grammar reference and integrating it with Sims 2 framework. I am hoping to see an ancillary integrated with it or any other traditional grammar in the near future. This is a practise focus power point and it would help if I could talk you through maybe if you are interested to meet one day!
students in action at SUNY Potsdam, see Deux Mondes?! (we will be back to that chapter)
(an essential concept: story, play, socializing vs. grammar/vocabulary and cartoonish figures)
Sims 2 is a LIFE SIMULATION game. Just like in the textbook where students deal with strange cartoonish creatures (supposedly French or French speaking) we can do better. We can have students create their cartoon and develop an EMOTIONAL bond with them. In the mean time, we review adjectives that descrive physical attributes, personality, clothing, Avoir, Etre, etc etc. Because we can import more authentic "virtual object" we can have a more authentic cultural set of cultural props (realia) and characters.
Students in 101 answered the ad on your DM textbook activity by having their sims actually ANSWER it. The ad itself was the model for a character creation in a 101 section. They were very excited to see which sim character would answer their ad and which student or group of students the character belonged to. This unified my sections and kept the classes interesting. (Second step, building a house and placing the character inside.)
This is Ravi's example in German. I met him at a conference a few years ago. I followed in his steps and decided to teach vocabulary that way on the French side. It was more fun and rewarding. I decided to look at the game from a linguist perspective. How can we teach vocabulary better how can we rethink Deux mondes blue and white pages (i think I have an answer for the cartoons no?) How do we get to LIVE MATERIALS?
Sims online could be an answer. Exchanging characters with students in a French-speaking country would be great. Life and Live!
I have presented on "domestic creativity" for a long time now! Students still enjoy making a house for their sim character
placing the character inside and helping them make the right decisions in their life whatever their fears and desires are
whatever their life aspirations are. In Deux Mondes like in any other textbook emphasis is placed on the domestic the family the social
then love etc. The same as the virtual life of those characters. Except they are LIVE! not cartoonish masquerades..So, they draw a floor plan, in French of course, while describing what the house will look like using the vocabulary of Deux Mondes. Then they get to create the house in 3d, place the character in, buy furniture (just like DM), place it where it belongs (great review of prepositions) etc etc.
Let's compare ch.10 les voyages with DM and Sims 2 Bon voyages.
Students sent me a post card of their sims' trips telling me what they did. They could also send me one telling me what they will do.
great sure perfect but how do you assess students' projects? (I hear it all the time!!)
